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Why the heck does 'score' mean 20? How we subconsciously know how to pronounce different plurals.
Episode 929
929. While we were looking into why we use the word "score" to mean "twenty," our minds were blown by how many languages still have remnants of a bas…
3 years, 3 months ago
Why English is the best language for Wordle, with Lynne Murphy
Episode 928
928. Listen to the interview that got me playing Wordle again. Lynne Murphy shared all sorts of things you probably didn't know about this game!
Lynne…
3 years, 3 months ago
It's all uphill from here (or is that downhill?). Eating like a pig (animal idioms).
Episode 927
927. Whether you're a bird brain or a wise old owl, you'll love this week's episode as we fight an uphill battle to understand a language filled with…
3 years, 3 months ago
What's wrong with 'there are' sentences? 5 fun facts about Spanish for Cinco de Mayo
Episode 926
926. You may remember being told not to start sentences with "there are," but do you know why? We have the answer! Plus, for Cinco de Mayo, we have f…
3 years, 3 months ago
Have you begged the question lately? What kind of learning is best: online, remote, distance, or virtual?
Episode 925
925. The existence of the manchineel tree does NOT beg the question of how many different ways a tree can actually hurt you. But it does show that yo…
3 years, 4 months ago
What we get wrong about 'um' and 'uh,' with Valerie Fridland
Episode 924
924. What if I told you that you actually should use "uh" and "um" when you're giving a talk? And what if I told you "dude" was originally an anti-ma…
3 years, 4 months ago
5 things every writer wants to learn, with Roy Peter Clark
Episode 923
923. America's writing coach, Roy Peter Clark, shares his wisdom about the five things every writer he's ever taught wants to learn.
| Transcript: ht…
3 years, 4 months ago
Killer bunnies in medieval manuscripts. The strange rules of 'dozen.'
Episode 922
922. "A dozen of eggs" sounds weird, but why? Rabbits performing violent acts are a common scene in medieval marginalia. But why are they there? Turn…
3 years, 4 months ago
The Rosetta Stone and taxes. Is your sufficiency suffonsified?
Episode 921
921. Taxes, and the words for them, go back all the way to ancient Egypt. Plus, I have much more to tell you about the phrase "I am sufficiently suff…
3 years, 5 months ago
Why we have both 'a' and 'an.' What does it mean to be lonely? Sufficiency.
Episode 920
920. Once you start thinking about it, it's weird that we have both "a" and "an." It gets even weirder from there! Plus, modern loneliness, and its s…
3 years, 5 months ago